From pianist and composer to tenured music theory professor to financial analyst at CU Boulder to higher education consulting, guest Teddy Niedermaier takes us through his different careers, why he decided to leave a tenured university teaching position and get an MBA at the age of 35, and how he navigated multiple career transitions. Teddy also shares insights on storytelling, interview do's and don'ts, networking, and more.

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Highlights from this episode include:

0:00 Intro

0:27: Episode introduction

2:33: Teddy’s Introduction and career journey

4:18: How to know it’s time for a change

8:20: Getting into composition

9:41: Keeping your identity through career switching

12:12: Making the decision to get an MBA

14:17: Leveraging the MBA during the job search

16:35: Storytelling

25:29: Interviewing

29:43: Day-to-day of consulting

35:32: Surprising similarities between internal and client-facing roles

36:49: Rockstars vs. superstars

38:55: Advice for people making the switch

43:04-48:30: Networking

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🎙️My Career Journey is a podcast that highlights different career journeys, tackles tough topics, and shares actionable tips and insights. Hosted by Emily Banzhaf and Allegra Montanari.

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🎧 Listen on all major podcast platforms

📺 Subscribe on YouTube

📸 Follow on Instagram

From viola performance to arts administration to working at a private equity investment firm to global AI strategy and marketing operations at Motorola, guest Claire Potter-Schneider talks about her varied career path and how she navigates career transitions.

She also shares insights and perspectives on topics such as asking for help, promotions, translating your story and skills into value, networking, mentorship, interviews, building relationships, and more.

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Highlights from the episode include:

0:26 - Episode intro

3:35 - Claire’s career journey

7:40 - Going into arts admin

8:22 -Transitioning to investor relations

9:46 - Culture shock of changing industries

12:00 - Learning for a completely new career shift (investor relations)

12:51 - Asking for help

14:19 - Promotions

17:21 - AI experience and learning

18:41 - Identify opportunities to provide value

19:24 - Translating your story and skills into value

21:07 - Transferable skills from music

23:59 - How anthropology helps with work

25:26 - Signs it’s time to leave a job/company

26:56 - Mentorship and building relationships

28:18 - Building relationships

29:29 - Interview prep, tips, red flags, and more

38:21 - Last thoughts and closing

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🎙️My Career Journey is a podcast that highlights different career journeys, tackles tough topics, and shares actionable tips and insights. Hosted by Emily Banzhaf and Allegra Montanari.

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🎧 Listen on all major podcast platforms

📺 Subscribe on YouTube

📸 Follow on Instagram

Hosts Emily Banzhaf and Allegra Montanari talk about their lives as musicians before making the decision to switch careers.

They dive into how they chose their instruments, musical training, what they did as freelancers, pros and cons about the music industry, and how they knew it was time to make a change.

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To listen to Emily's music, check out:

• Emily's YouTube channel

To listen to Allegra's music, check out her:

• Duo with classical guitarist Jack Cimo
• Performance of a new work by Minneapolis composer Steve Heitzeg
• Performance as Adjunct Faculty

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Chapters

0:00 - Introduction and career backgrounds

3:20 - When we started playing music and how we chose our instruments

5:19 - Emily explains what it was like attending the Juilliard Pre-College program

7:06 - Allegra explains what it was like going to youth orchestra in Atlanta

8:07 - Applying to undergrad programs

11:26 - Our paths after undergrad

15:28 - What we did as freelancers

21:07 - Pros of the music industry

24:42 - Favorite gigs

26:21 - Cons of the music industry

34:29 - How we approached our sense of identity as musicians and when making the switch

40:31 - The decision to make the switch

46:02 - How we felt when we committed to making the switch

48:27 - Thing we’d do differently as musicians

54:36 - What we’ll talk about in the next episode and closing

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🎙️My Career Journey is a podcast that highlights different career journeys, tackles tough topics, and shares actionable tips and insights. Hosted by Emily Banzhaf and Allegra Montanari.

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🎧 Listen on all major podcast platforms

📺 Subscribe on YouTube

📸 Follow on Instagram

Hosts Emily Banzhaf and Allegra Montanari introduce My Career Journey, a new podcast that highlights different career journeys, tackles tough topics, and shares actionable tips and insights.

Emily and Allegra share a little about themselves, why they’re starting this podcast, and what to expect.

For more content, follow @MyCareerJourneyPod on YouTube and Instagram.